Can anyone help? I've had an intermittent problem with my 97 Felicia 1.6 GLXi. When the problem occurs there's a loss of power on acceleration (at any speed) - it seems happiest at a long steady speed (e.g. fairly slow on the m/way). This has got worse recently; yesterday foot to the floor I was struggling to reach 30 mph when the idling it felt like being in a tractor. Any ideas anyone? I spoke to a mechanic who said to look on the internet because these problems can be hard to diagnose, especially in older cars where more than one thing could be the cause.

A separate (I think) problem is that the engine has always had a tendency to cut out when I put the clutch down (eg. to stop or change gears in stop-start traffic). I have to kick start 'on the go'. This has been an intermittent problem since I first got the car 8 years ago and has never got any worse or better. Dunno if it's related to the latest issue with power (could this be the petrol not getting through?)

There's a multitude of thigs that could be causing these problems.

Obviously the engine needs to be serviced and generally maintined before you start tackling problems with the engine as it may just be down to poor spark plugs, leads, air filter etc.

Also check all hoses in the engine bay... vacuum leaks can cause the engine to cut out when the clutch drops or heavy breaking etc.

Another thing to check is the temperature guage and where it sits during normal driving as this can be a good idicator to the state of the temperature sensor.

Phil

As Phil says, the first thing is to check the HT is in good nick.

I've been having the same sort of problem recently with cold starts, for the first 5 minutes or so if you put the foot down you get hesitation then a burst of acceleration, then hesitation again, but the problem clears after about 5 minutes. Also recently been having the car conk out when the clutch goes in / under heavy braking, it hasn't cut out on me since I gave the throttle body a good clean!

Where's the best place to start with this then? Spark plugs? I'm gonna give the car an oil change in the next week or 2 for starters

I would do a full service to start as everyone else is saying. By full (on the 1.6) - Spark plugs, HT Leads, Distributor cap, rotor arm, oil & filter, and air filter.

Next clean the throttle body well. I had this problem with my 1.6 for a while and keeping the throttle body was key to help preventing the problem. Others have also changed the hall sensor - on the gear box I think. Im sure someone else will clarify further.

My Felly 1.6 sounded rough before I had a full service with plug changes and a dose of injector cleaner.

Temp sensor? idle sensor? could even be the o2 lamda sensor.

Your exhaust/CAT is OK isn't it?

Thanks for your advice, everyone! Yes, the exhaust/cat should be ok, just recently had it replaced/checked (respectively). I've also just had an oil and filter change. However, spark plugs probably do need attention and a service is due. The engine's now running so loudly sounds like I'm driving chitty chitty bang bang... Plus slight burning smell... I think a full service is in order, although am beginning to wonder about the scrappage scheme. Although not sure if that's really just a scheme to help car manufacturers rather than drivers... Clearly everyone on this forum is car-savvy (unlike me, evidently!), what's your opinion?:confused:

What about the fuel filter?

The cutting out when coming to a stop and pushing the clutch down seems to be the norm. You could spend a lot of money and make no progress on investigating it. Just a set of plugs and leads costs rather a lot. Every car needs servicing though. If the car will restart immediately it may be easier to live with this. Mine goes really well apart from the cut out glitch which I suspect may be a design fault or linked to water seepage problems.

If it's still the same after a full service, try the fuel filter and the thermostat temp sensor. About £20 all in. The temp sensor sorted my running problems out. It's like a new car now.